Taoiseach: Attacks on gardai part of wider increase in anger and violence

The Taoiseach has expressed concern at what he said was the growth of anger and violence in Ireland, while the Tanaiste suggested that attacks on Gardai was part of an increase in violence against public servants.

The government leaders were responding to an incident where a garda was struck with a missile while responding to reports of dangerous driving in Ballyfermot, Dublin.

A marked Garda car and a community policing car sustained “significant” damage at the same incident.

Both Leo Varadkar and Micheal Martin condemned the incident and suggested it was part of a broader trend.

“I just want to condemn unreservedly an attack that has occurred on a member of An Garda Siochana,” Leo Varadkar told reporters in Dublin.

“Gardai keep our streets safe, keep us safe, and it’s just terrible to see any of them being injured in the course of their work.

“We are taking action on this, in addition to the additional Gardai that are being hired this year, we’re going to bring in legislation to bring in body cameras which will give Gardai some protection.”

Tanaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence Micheal Martin also condemned the attack on the member of An Garda Siochana.

“It’s outrageous that such attacks take place,” he said.

“We’re also conscious that people generally in emergency services or public services have come under increasing threats: attacks on our bus services and within the health service, at different times we’ve heard people on the frontline articulate the degree to which they’ve been put under pressure and violent threats made against them.

“I know different ministers are working together in terms of how best legislatively … we can deal with this.

“There’s a number of strands to it, there’s the sanction strand – sentencing and so on – but there’s also a broader societal issue in terms of both the centrality of essential services, in particular An Garda Siochana, towards society, to cohesion within our society.”

He said it was important to press upon the next generation that attacking gardai “is simply a no no in our society”.

“It’s something that we cannot tolerate,” he said.

Mr Varadkar added: “Of course it’s not just happening to Gardai – I feel there’s been an increase just in general violence in our society. So many appalling acts of violence against children in recent months that are just almost too hard to talk about.

“And of course we know that our healthcare workers are suffering an increase in attacks as well. And last year, a big increase in attacks in people in the LGBT community, and then of course, attacks on migrants as well.

“So I think we have to ask ourselves, what is it that’s changed in our society in the last couple of years that we’ve seen this almost normalisation of violence against people?

“It’s something that I’m very worried about, and I particularly condemn the attack on gardai, but I think it goes wider than that, and we have to have a national conversation about what’s driving this anger and this violence.”